Poison
by Maximillian Havisham
Summary: They say if you take a little over time you build an immunity.


There was something odd about how the wind blew in Magnolia today. It was a bit fiercer then normal. The steady gentle breeze had evolved into a spirited gust that gave the citizens of the lively town slight pause. As they tried to make sense of it all, one woman confidently strutted through the strong winds.

Her long dress swaying in the wind, Minerva Orland was not bothered at all by the odd weather. In fact she had hardly noticed it – or anything happening around her for that matter - since stepping off the train. She had one singular focus for arriving in Magnolia today, the Fairy Tail guild.

Not long after Ishgal's victory in the war against Alvarez, the magic council established a new job system to better strengthen relations between the various guilds in the land. Thus inter-guild missions - or "joint jobs" for short - were born. Under this new system, a new job board was put in every guild that was linked directly to the magic council. Once a job was posted there two or more guilds could accept – depending on the requirement – and pick candidates to take the job on their guild behalf. Due to some guilds still harboring age old grudges it took some getting used to, but eventually the system became just another aspect of being a wizard.

Minerva approached the doors of the Fairy Tail guild hall and took a moment to admire the building. If she recalled correctly it was rebuilt not long after the guild came back together. It wasn't as big as Sabertooth's building, but its design was admirable nonetheless.

The longer she stared at it the more restless she became. She had never been here on her own before. The past few joint jobs with Fairy Tail she had been joined by either Rogue, Yukino, or any other member of her team. The only other time she came to the guild was when she accompanied Sting to speak with Laxus - Fairy Tail's new master. Even then they weren't there longer than ten minutes.

She took a breath to settle her nerves and opened the large doors. She had personally requested this job after all. It was too late to have second thoughts.

"Welcome to Fairy Tail!"

The warm voice that greeted her belonged to none other than Mirajane Strauss. She was behind the bar, cleaning the dishes that she had just finished washing in the sink. When she saw Minerva, her smile widened.

"Minerva! It's so good to see you!"

"Likewise." Minerva replied with a small grin.

She walked to the bar and sat down on the stool directly in front of the barmaid. The two had gained a mutual respect after Mirajane and Fairy Tail's alchemist Porlyusica aided Minerva in controlling the demon particles inside of her body a year ago. They wouldn't exactly call one another friend, but they admitted that they were at least closer than casual acquaintances.

"What brings you here? Are you helping Sting out again? How is he by the way?"

"The master is fine. Fawning over Yukino as usual. As for me I'm here for the inter-guild job."

"Oh! I had almost forgot about that. What was it again?"

"Escorting a foreign noble to the capital. A number of trains are still being rebuilt after the devastation from the war, so the only way for them to get to Crocus is on foot."

"The repairs are still going slow I heard. A few of the guilds are helping, but who knows when it will all be done? Who is going with you?"

"…Natsu Dragneel. Originally Erza was supposed to go, but apparently she had other matters to attend to at the last minute."

Mirajane couldn't help but giggle at Minerva's deflated response. "Yeah she had to help Laxus with some of his guild master duties, but I wouldn't worry too much. Natsu is more than capable of picking up the slack if something goes wrong."

"It's not his fighting abilities I'm concerned about. It's his brain. He's much too dense for his own good."

"Well I can't argue with you there, but Natsu's heart is in the right place. There's no one else I'd rely on in a pinch. You'll see. He may just surprise you."

"I'll have to take your word for it, Mirajane."

The barmaid giggled again. "Would you like something to drink while you wait for him?"

"Please. I'll take a water."

"Coming right up."

Mirajane promptly filled a glass of cold water and handed it to the parched princess. Before Minerva even took her first sip, the doors to the guild hall burst open with a bang.

"We're here!"

Minerva nearly dropped her glass out of fright. The loud announcement came from none other than her designated comrade, Natsu Dragneel. He stood at the top of the stairs leading to the doors with a wide smile on his face, his ever loyal companion, Happy floating at his side.

"Good morning, you two."

Mirajane's greeting retained it's upbeat tone, but Minerva was much less welcoming. While she didn't drop the glass, a good portion of its contents splashed onto her dress. "Yes. So good to see you in such high spirits this early in the morning." She grabbed a couple of napkins and tried her best to dry the wet spot. It was times like these she missed her more malicious mindset.

"Yo, Minerva. What are you doing here?"

"You get lost or something?"

Minerva answered their mindless questions as calmly as she could. "I am here for our job."

After a few seconds of contemplation, Natsu's eyes opened in realization. "Oh yeah! Was that supposed to be today? I totally forgot."

"I gathered. Are you ready to leave? I'm sure the client is already growing restless waiting for us."

"I have to get my stuff from home and-"

Before Natsu could finish his explanation Minerva created a bubble behind him with her Territory magic and promptly pushed him inside. His frightened shout echoed as his body faded away.

"What did you do that for?!" Happy shouted.

"It would have taken too much time for us to walk back to his house and wait for him to gather his equipment. I simply expedited the process."

"How do you know where Natsu lives?" asked a curious Mirajane.

"Lucy told me about it. I only need to know the general location of place to transport something there."

"Sounds handy."

"It has it's uses." Minerva opened another bubble and Natsu returned, this time with a fully packed bag on his back. "Are you ready now?"

"Yep." Natsu smiled. "Let's go."

"As you wish."

Mirajane was confused by Natsu's nonchalant behavior, but she chose not to question it. "Good luck, you two."

"Thanks. See you tomorrow."

Minerva bowed her head. "It was nice seeing you, Mirajane."

"Be sure that Natsu and Happy don't cause too much trouble." The barmaid joked.

"I will do my best."

The trio exited the guild hall and proceeded on the path to Shirotsume – which is where they would be meeting the client. As soon as they reached the town outer limits, Natsu's smile turned into an irritated scowl.

"You know you could have warned me before you used your magic."

Minerva linked her arm around his and smiled at him. "Apologies, love. There wasn't much time. Think of it as revenge for making me spill my drink."

Natsu looked down to the wet spot on Minerva's dress and stopped walking.

"What is it?"

"Hold still."

Natsu knelt down and pressed his hand on the still damp spot - which was conveniently on the Princess' hip near her rump. With a slight tightening of his grip, a warmth ran through Minerva's lower body. She inhaled sharply. In a second the spot had dried completely.

"There. You should be good now."

Minerva slowly traced her finger against Natsu's jaw and lifted his chin, forcing him to look at her alluring gaze and lust-ridden smirk. "Careful, pet. Don't tempt me. We're late enough as it is. "

Natsu quickly stood up and looked away. "W-what are you talking about?"

Happy rolled his eyes. "Are you guys going to flirt the whole way there again?"

"We're not flirting!" Natsu denied from beneath reddened cheeks. Minerva lifted her arm and territory orb covered her hand.

"Perhaps you would be better suited riding inside of Natsu's bag for the rest of the way."

Happy's body stiffened. "No, Ma'am! I'll be good!"

The orb faded away. "Glad to hear it."

Natsu's stomach growled. "Man, I didn't even get to eat anything this morning."

"Don't worry, pet. I'll be sure to cook you something once we finish the job."

Natsu's excitement overflowed. He loved Minerva's cooking."Really?!"

"Of course." The Princess of Sabertooth grabbed Natsu by the arm and pulled him close, her head lovingly resting on his shoulder. "Anything you desire."

* * *

 **Little one-shot just to clear the old cobwebs. Thought it would be a good opportunity to see if I could write Minerva. For the most part I think this turned out well enough, but ya'll are the real judges.**

 **As always leave a review/comment letting me know what you think. Thanks for reading! :)**


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